HIGH SCHOOL HOOPS: Berkley bumps off Royal Oak

ROYAL OAK — Sophomore guard Jonathan Radner scored 27 points and visiting Berkley withstood a second-half surge by Royal Oak to grind out a 58-49 victory in the season opener on Tuesday night.

“I try and lead my team the best I can,” said Radner, who scored most of his points on driving, twisting layups. “It was loud in there and I had to keep restating where my teammates were supposed to be.”

Radner, who started last season as a freshman, called the rival victory a “stepping stone” for the Bears (1-0) which will play in the Oakland Activities Association Blue Division this season.

“We have good team chemistry,” he said. “We’re all in this together. It’s a stepping stone for us over a rival.”

Royal Oak made a couple 6-0 and 4-0 runs late in the game but could only get to within 5 points of the Bears in the fourth quarter.

The Ravens (0-1) will play in the OAA Gold Division this season.

“We felt good coming into the game, but we were unexpectedly tense,” said senior guard Blake Hairston, who scored 13 points for the Ravens, including a pair of 3-pointers. “We have to play more consistent – and keep playing more consistent.”

Hairston, a 5-foot-9 guard, said Coach Mike Massuci told players afterward that he was disappointed in the teams’ overall performance, but Hairston also noted it was just one game.

“We have a lot of work to do,” he said. “We have to come out and just work harder at practice and be ready to play better against Hamtramck.”

Massuci, now in his second season at Royal Oak after a long career at Shrine Catholic, said Tuesday’s performance indeed has his coaching staff ready to step up the challenge for his players.

“As a team I see a lot of evidence that we’re not where we need to be,” Massuci said. “We have great kids who want to play, but we have a lot of work ahead of us.”

Senior 6-foor-4 shooting guard Devin Carmen led the Ravens with 14 points, but tenacious defense by the Bears prevented Carmen from taking over the game offensively.

“Every time they made a run in the second half we made a run,” Berkley third-year coach David McGlown said Tuesday. “We got a lot of resolve and played hard tonight.”

The Ravens trailed 9-0 early before senior guard CJ Montgomery (11 points) knocked down a 3-pointer for Royal Oak’s first points of the season. But Berkley bounced right back and led 17-9 after the first quarter and 26-17 at the half.

“Royal Oak came out with intensity, but we were able to overcome it,” McGlown noted. “We need to work on our intensity. At times we didn’t play with any.”

Berkley took a 40-32 lead into the fourth quarter as Radner scored 16 second half points to lead the Bears.

Still, the Ravens made some adjustments on offense which set up an exciting final stanza.

Royal Oak junior Erich Grohs came off the bench and hit a 3-pointer with 3:15 left to play to cut the Bears’ lead to 46-40, and a Montgomery 3-pointer had the Ravens down, 48-43.

But Radner scored on a patented driving layup for a 52-45 lead; and Berkley used free throws from Steen and Radner down the stretch to secure the victory.

The Ravens were hampered early in the game when 6-foot-5 senior center Joel Gorbold received his second personal foul. Gorbold, a team captain, didn’t score his first field goal of the game until a minute left to play.

The Ravens were also short on the bench when junior guard Dante Valente - making his first varsity appearance – was taken to the hospital with an apparent broken nose sustained in the first half.

The Bears shot just 12-of-25 from the free throw line compared to 9-for-17 for Royal Oak.

Of note, the first annual Jerry Barich Classic will be held at 10 a.m. on Dec. 22 at Royal Oak High School. Basketball alumni from Royal Oak Kimball, Royal Oak Dondero and Royal Oak High School are encouraged to take part in the alumni basketball game. For more information or to register, call John Sebastian at (248) 563-8264.

NON-LEAGUE

LAMPHERE 48, MACOMB CHRISTIAN 17: The Rams opened the season with a victory, thanks to a well-balanced attack led by sophomore Daiquan Lockett’s 13 points.

Also for Lamphere, senior Tarius Hagood scored eight and grabbed 10 rebounds, while Jason May knocked down seven points off the bench.

Lamphere forged a 30-15 halftime lead, and then out-scored the Vikings 20-2 in the third quarter.

Lamphere entertains Roeper Thursday night.

OAA CROSSOVER

TROY 47, ATHENS 35: An ice cold second quarter was the undoing for Athens (0-3) as the Colts cruised to a 47-35 victory.

Troy (1-2) pounded the glass all night, especially on the offensive end finishing with 17 offensive rebounds, and a total rebounding edge of 30-16. The offensive rebounds helped the Colts get to the free-throw line 30 times in the game.

Sydney Heath had a double-double for Troy, leading all scorers with 22 points to go with 13 rebounds. However, her play in the paint on the defensive end might have been more impressive, as she recorded seven blocks.

Heath wasn’t the only player to record a double-double. Lauren Atwell finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds to lead the Red Hawks in both categories.